USS Cinchona

USS Cinchona (AN-12/YN-7) was an Aloe-class net laying ship which was assigned to serve the U.S. Navy during World War II with her protective anti-submarine nets.

History
United States
Name	USS Cinchona
Namesake	Various trees the dried bark of which produces quinine
Builder	Commercial Iron Works, Portland, Oregon
Laid down	as (YN-7), date unknown
Launched	2 July 1941
Sponsored by	Mrs. W. Casey
Commissioned	20 December 1942 as USS Cinchona (YN-7)
Decommissioned	6 November 1946, at Vancouver, Washington
In service	15 August 1941 as Cinchona (YN-7)
Reclassified	AN-12, 20 December 1944
Stricken	Unknown
Homeport	Tiburon, California
Honors and awards	Two battle stars: under attack on Pearl Harbor, and the Mariana Islands operation
Fate	Transferred to the U.S. Maritime Administration, 1 June 1961; sold for non-transportation use, 17 February 1976
General characteristics
Type	Aloe-class net laying ship
Tonnage	660 tons
Displacement	850 tons
Length	163 ft 2 in (49.73 m)
Beam	30 ft 6 in (9.30 m)
Draft	11 ft 8 in (3.56 m)
Propulsion	diesel engine, single propeller
Speed	12 knots
Complement	48 officers and enlisted
Armament	one single 3 in (76 mm) dual purpose gun mount; three single 20 mm AA gun mounts; four 0.5 in (12.7 mm). machine guns; one y-gun

Built in Portland, Oregon

Cinchona (YN-7) was launched on 2 July 1941 by Commercial Iron Works, Portland, Oregon; sponsored by Mrs. W. Casey; outfitted by Puget Sound Navy Yard; and placed in service on 15 August 1941.

World War II service

Assigned to the 14th Naval District, she arrived at Pearl Harbor on 17 October where she took up duty in net repair and replacement, salvage of gear lost or adrift, and maintenance of net and boom defenses.

Under attack at Pearl Harbor

During the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, on 7 December 1941, Cinchona manned both her machine guns and her 3" gun, and, as the enemy repeatedly strafed her deck, she closed the gaps in the net defenses protecting the dry-docks.

Continuing her salvage operations in the Hawaii group, Cinchona salvaged district patrol craft YP-108 off Lanai in June 1942, and in August escorted a motor torpedo boat convoy to Midway Islands, where she installed nets around the dock spaces, returning to Pearl Harbor early in September.

She was placed in commission on 20 December 1942, her officer-in-charge Lieutenant T. A. Ingham receiving the title commanding officer. She continued local operations at Pearl Harbor, and on 20 January 1944 was redesignated AN-12.

Saipan operations

Cinchona arrived off newly invaded Saipan 16 June 1944. She conducted patrols, assisted LST-84 after an enemy bomb started a fire on board, and then inspected the Japanese net line in Tanapag Harbor. She remained at Saipan on salvage and net operations until 18 November when she steamed to Guam and Ulithi to lay cables.

From 7 December 1944 to 30 June 1945 Cinchona conducted net operations, laid moorings, and aided in installing a pipeline at Guam.

Post-war activity

Returning to the States 27 July, she conducted net operations at Long Beach, California, and out of Mare Island Naval Shipyard until 24 August 1946 when she sailed for Astoria, Oregon.

Post-war decommissioning

Cinchona was placed out of commission in reserve 6 November 1946 at Vancouver, Washington.

Honors and awards

Cinchona received two battle stars for World War II service. The first was for her performance at Pearl Harbor while under attack by Japanese planes. The second was for her operating under dangerous conditions during the Mariana Islands operation.

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - USS Cinchona (AN-12) – ex - USS Cinchona (YN-7) (1942 - 1944) - Cinchona (YN-7) (1941 - 1942)